


Stargazer

by Miaou Jones (miaoujones)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Conversations, Established Relationship, Love, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-05
Updated: 2016-09-05
Packaged: 2018-08-13 02:52:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7959481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miaoujones/pseuds/Miaou%20Jones
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shiro is gazing out into the universe when Keith turns to him, and Keith can't tell whether Shiro is looking at the stars or the space between them, but he'd bet Shiro has always been a stargazer and always will be.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stargazer

There are a lot of stars out there in the universe. 

Science, at least human science, doesn't know if the universe itself is infinite or finite, but it does know that almost all galaxies are moving away from each other, the universe expanding, creating more space.

Yeah, there are a lot of stars out there, Keith thinks as he stands at one of the castle's many observation windows, but there is even more space. 

They may well be in the middle of a constellation right now, but any pattern in the stars they're among is impossible to discern at this proximity. And though the stars are brilliant, it's the unfathomable space between them that Keith gazes at now; not just at, but into.

The echo of footsteps is deliberate enough that Keith knows he was meant to hear them. He glances over his shoulder at Shiro, still blinking sleep from his eyes as he runs a hand through his already tousled hair.

Keith returns his gaze to the space between the stars as Shiro comes to stand next to him.

"Did I have a nightmare?" Shiro's voice sounds so calm, Keith looks at him: his eyes are calm too.

Keith feels a knot unravel in his chest. "No." 

Shiro nods. As he studies Keith, his eyes are still calm but there's something behind his gaze... Keith knows Shiro thinks Keith is the one who had the nightmare but he doesn't say anything and Keith doesn't either. Maybe it's not fair to let him think that but Keith doesn't know how to tell Shiro that he sometimes stays awake watching Shiro sleep. Not looking for nightmares, just watching Shiro's face as he sleeps. 

"No matter how bad it gets," Shiro says, leaning on the railing in front of the window as he looks out, "it's only a dream."

"I know," Keith says. 

A golden pinpoint emerges from below the faint blue halo that rings the planet they're passing. It seems to expand as it rises, intensifying in succession to deep shades of red and orange and yellow, blossoming into brilliant white and shooting out strands of light. Organized into half a dozen streams, the sunbeams fan out as they stretch and reach into the darkness.

"You'd be okay, even if something did happen—" 

Keith turns to Shiro sharply. "Don't."

Their gazes meet. Shiro's calm eyes are full of the words Keith doesn't want him to say.

Shiro says them anyhow: "—it would be okay; you'll be okay, Keith. You're stronger than you think."

Keith shakes his head. Shiro opens his mouth to say something else but Keith pushes his words out first: "I don't want that." He's agitated, his brain going faster than his mouth can keep up with, his mouth skipping words in the effort, and he tries again. "I won't—I don't want to talk or think about something like that."

Shiro nods, goes quiet. Stands beside him quietly.

"When we get back to Earth," Shiro says after a moment; he's gazing out into the universe when Keith turns to him, and Keith can't tell whether Shiro is looking at the stars or the space between them, but he'd bet Shiro has always been a stargazer and always will be, "do you want to go on a date with me?"

Keith looks at him while Shiro looks at the stars. They got together without ever going on a proper, conventional date. Keith never thought he needed anything like that—until Shiro didn't come back from Cerberus. "Yeah." 

The word comes out softer than he thought it would, but Shiro hears him anyhow and looks at him. Smiles. "Dinner and a movie, then, when we're back home."

It's such a cliché, dinner and a movie. Keith can't believe Shiro came up with that, of all things; and he can't believe how much he wants that cliché. He nods.

"And," Shiro says, stargazing out the window again, "do you want me to be in love with you?"

As he looks at Shiro now, Keith wonders how Shiro's gaze can be so clear. They've never said those words and Keith didn't know Shiro—even when Shiro fucked him... there's a difference between love and in love. 

Or maybe there isn't. 

"Yeah," he says. "Yes."

It's not enough, but Shiro is smiling when he looks at Keith. "That one I can do right now." He leans down and touches Keith's mouth with his own, their lips dovetailing, parting for licks of mutual exploration and breath.

Shiro smiles again when they part. "And do you want to try to save the universe with me?"

The words sound like a joke but the tone—the absolute sincerity of Shiro's tone tells Keith how genuine a question it really is. Shiro's gaze matches his tone as he looks at Keith and Keith knows he needs to give an honest answer. He's not crazy about Shiro risking himself to save the universe; he can't in all honesty say he wants this—

But this is what they have. And if Shiro is going to do this, then someone will have to be there to watch his back, because no way will Shiro think about saving himself while he's trying to save the universe. Keith knows—he heard about what Shiro did for Pidge's brother, and he knows that if Shiro had it to do over, he'd do the same again; he'd do the same for any of the other paladins, he'd probably do it for anyone. That's just how he is, and maybe he wouldn't be Shiro if he weren't like this.

Since he _is_ like this, someone will have to be there to watch out for him. 

Keith meets Shiro's eyes and nods. "Yeah. I do."

Shiro isn't smiling now but his eyes—

His eyes are a universe, a window into the cosmos of Shiro, and Keith gazes and gazes. 

Even up close, too close to see the stars in Shiro's eyes, too close to see anything clearly, he keeps gazing as he breathes, gazing as he breathes into Shiro, as he feels Shiro breathing into him.


End file.
